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Last updated:

May 26, 2025

Filtering

Will Telegram and X Be Unblocked? An Interview with Keyvan Noghrehkar/ Ali Kalaei

The issue of filtering and removing restrictions on various internet platforms has been a highly debated topic in Iran over the past few years. While the Minister of Communications has stated that lifting the ban on all platforms is on the government’s agenda—and recently, WhatsApp and Google Play were unblocked—public opinion and observers are left […]...

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Created By: Ali Kalaei
January 20, 2025

An Interview with Citizens on the Daily Impacts of Internet Filtering/ Dina Ghalibaf

Internet filtering in Iran has become one of the most complex and serious social and economic issues. This policy has not only affected citizens’ daily lives but also challenged public perceptions of trust and transparency in governance. In this report, we visited Enghelab Street, one of the busiest areas in Tehran, to speak with various […]...

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Created By: Dina Ghalibaf
January 20, 2025

From Financial Gains to Security Policies: Filtering and the VPN Sales Mafia in Iran/ Seyed Mohammad Sohofi

Unofficial reports suggest that the financial turnover from VPN sales in Iran is remarkably high due to the widespread use of these tools and the lack of transparency in this market. With the sharp rise in demand for VPNs following the widespread filtering of social media platforms such as Instagram, WhatsApp, X (formerly Twitter), Telegram, […]...

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Created By: Seyed Mohammad Sohofi
January 20, 2025

The Mafia of Filtering or VPNs: Which Side Does the Government Listen to in Its Fight Against a Free Internet?/ Amir Aghaei

Radical members of parliament, the spokesperson for the Pezeshkian administration, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, members of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, and many other names—while differing significantly in their political approaches and perspectives on managing the internet in Iran, they all share one thing in common: beating the drum of the VPN mafia. […]...

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Created By: Amir Aghayi
January 20, 2025

Stress and Psychological Impacts of Communication Restrictions on Users/ Alireza Goodarzi

To have a simple voice or video call with friends living outside Iran, I sometimes have to open and close several apps before one finally connects us for a few minutes. They can’t access domestic platforms, and we can’t use most international apps. I have to try multiple VPNs to find one that works. One […]...

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Created By: Alireza Goodarzi
January 20, 2025

Why Insist on Maintaining Filtering?/ Majid Shia’ali

One of the main promises of the Pezeshkian administration was to lift the filtering of social media platforms. In recent months, reformists have tried to achieve a symbolic success for the unsupported Pezeshkian administration by lifting the ban on some social networks amidst the current crises. However, despite all these efforts, the administration’s achievements have […]...

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Created By: Majid Shia’ali
January 20, 2025

The Digital Economy in the Cage of Filtering/ Ahmad Alavi

According to the fourth report by the Tehran E-Commerce Association, Iran ranks 98th among 100 countries in terms of internet quality. In this ranking, Iran is third from the bottom, following Cuba and Turkmenistan. Furthermore, Iran and China are at the top of the list for the highest number of filtered domains. Social media filtering […]...

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Created By: Ahmad Alavi
January 20, 2025

The Internet in Iran Has No Meaning Without VPNs/ Soroush Ahmadi

The issue of filtering in Iran is as complex as it is straightforward. If we set aside the question of why filtering occurs in Iran and why we are the second-most restricted country for internet access after China, we can discuss the surrounding issues. The internet, the most modern method of communication in the world, […]...

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Created By: Soroush Ahmadi
January 20, 2025

The Right to Internet Access from the Perspective of International and Iranian Laws/ Abouzar Zaman

Human rights, along with the enactment of laws to recognize these rights, establish mechanisms to ensure their realization, and define their limitations, have always evolved in response to changing human needs, societal developments, and advancements in science and technology. Many emerging legal issues, while interpretable and inferable from previously recognized principles and laws, require new […]...

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Created By: Abouzar Zaman
January 20, 2025

Human Rights in the Grip of Internet Filtering/ Sina Yousefi

Filtering, as a tool for controlling and restricting access to information, has always been a controversial issue in the realm of cybersecurity and human rights violations. This policy, often justified by concepts such as national security, territorial integrity, public order, and the system’s interests, can, in practice, lead to serious violations of freedom of expression, […]...

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Created By: Sina Yousefi
January 20, 2025

Fundamental Freedoms of the Nation in the Hands of Quasi-Legislative Authorities/ Ehsan Haghi

One of the most fundamental and prominent indicators of civil societies is the reliance on “law” in the administration of affairs, relationships, and personal and social interactions—a principle often referred to as the rule of law. Accordingly, in the relationship between the government and citizens, as well as among citizens themselves, it is the law […]...

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Created By: Ehsan Haghi
January 20, 2025

Controversy and Clamor Against Stratified Internet Access/ Parvaneh Ahmadi

The idea of stratified internet access, introduced after the unblocking of WhatsApp, signaled stricter governmental control over the internet and was met with opposition from various groups. This idea was initially proposed before WhatsApp was unblocked by a representative advocating for governance of cyberspace. In December 2024 (Azar 1403), Hossein Ali Haji Deligani, Vice Chairman […]...

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Created By: Parvaneh Ahmadi
January 20, 2025